Children's BiblesHaving bought Children's Bibles and Bible storybooks,
plus taught and written curriculum for more than 20 years as a Director of
Christian Education, I have built a personal library of the best children's
Bibles and Bible storybooks which I do and don't recommend to you for use
in Sunday School, at home Bible time, or gifts for children.

What is the difference between a Children's Bible
and a Children's Bible storybook?
This is my view:

A true children's Bible, is one with
complete text from any of the recognized translations of the Bible.
Of the most popular Bible versions, the top easiest to read Bibles for
grade 3 and up may be The Good News Bible. Next would be the NIV, NIrV,
and NRSV. For churches preferring the KJV, the NKJV is the better choice
for children. It may include extra information, and pictures.

A children's Bible storybook, (Sometimes
titled as a Children's Bible) however, usually does not have every story
found in a true Children's Bible, and the stories are paraphrased to
either a great or lesser extent. In Bible storybooks for the youngest
children, the stories are shortened and/or may specifically exclude
killings. David and Goliath will be used as the comparative
story in the information for each Bible. For smaller children,
certain stories may be omitted entirely.

At what grade do children adapt to reading a true
children's Bible rather than a children's Bible storybook?

Over the long haul, I have found children in third
grade can begin to read the modern translations. There are some Bible
storybooks however for third through 5th graders, that add excitement
through the paraphrasing, and have visually stimulating pictures. These
serve a good purpose if each child does not have their own Bible to
use in Sunday School, or to inspire them to read Bible stories at home.

Whether you are looking for a Children's Bible
to use in your Sunday School classroom, or for children's gift Bible,
I offer these insights into the appropriateness and usefulness of the
following:Key:
(growing into age or grade) target ages or grades (growing out of age
or grade)
OT = Old Testament NT = New Testament
The comparative story is David and Goliath with reference to how it
is written.

Age 5 to 8 (9)Versatile
grow-into book that you can read to children now, and they can
read by themselves later on. Moderately paraphrased stories. Each
story has the Bible passages referenced at the beginning. David kills GoliathThese
are bold and fun pictures which encourage children to pick up
the book to browse. They make me smile! And there's no harm in
that! The stories are a bit thin for 9 year olds, but boys particularly
still love the pictures as they are exciting. There are plenty
of pictures. Great
book to particularly interest boys!Has
a separate OT and NT Table of Contents, a Topical
Index and Words You Should Know - which younger
kid's need for words like birthright, decree and miracle, for
example.

Age
(2) 3 to 5 (6)Paraphrased
to be short, simple stories, but they do express the idea.
David hits the giant with a stone, but it is not stated that he
killed him. The story includes words like "sling" and
"armor", which probably aren't in their vocabulary yet,
but could be explained and somewhat understood through the pictures
and implementing my Tips for Reading to Children. The
pictures show little detail to go with the story, and are flat,
cartoonish, but that's ok for this age group. Chocked full of
pictures. (see my notes on reading with pictures)Good
book to read aloud to a young Sunday School class and discuss
the pictures, or give as a gift to a small child. Has
90+ OT and NT stories, Table of Contents and Index of Favorite
Characters and Stories.
THIS BIBLE STORYBOOK IS RECOMMENDED.

Age
2- 3Stories
very paraphrased to be very short, matching the usually short
attention span of toddlers. I absolutely recommend you implement
my Tips for Reading to Children. with this age group.
David fought Goliath. No mention of killing. A good beginning
to the story, but the child would have to figure out how God let
David win- what happened. The story includes words like "sling"
and "salves", which probably aren't in their vocabulary
yet, and would not necessarily be easy to explain to them. Most
stories start out well for the age level, but then either use
unfamiliar words, or concepts rather than concrete explanations.You
can see my notes on Customizing and Manually Editing
a book. The
pictures show minimum detail to go with the story, and are flat,
cartoonish, but that's ok for this age group. It has lots of pictures
in proportion to textTake
a closer look at The Beginners Bible for age (2) 3 to 5 (6)

Age
(7) 8-12I
really wish this one wasn't named "Golden" which too
often is associated with the little books for small children.
This is a Bible storybook for older children. It is nicely written
for this age group and had an editorial advisory board made up
of professors and theologians, which gives it accuracy without
being "stuffy". It has some direct Bible quotes in places
where they seem to fit appropriately. This book includes many,
many OT and NT Bible stories (over 500 pages) and it is organized
not only by story, but identifies story groups such as The
creation and the Patriarchs. Once in a while it lapses into
archaic language, but not very often.
This is a good alternative to reading directly from a Bible in
a classroom situation. It is also a very good book for parents
to read with children and to discuss the pictures.
David cut off Goliath's head and killed him, then returns from
the slaughter of the Philistines. It does not soft sell the story.The
illustrations are detailed and realistic. Many are exciting, dramatic
and bold. They are not modernized, which I think adds a sense
of history.
THIS BIBLE STORYBOOK IS RECOMMENDED.

Age
18 months to 30 months (3-4)This
is a better picture book than storybook, and it seems that's what
it was intended to be. It covers stories like Creation, Adam &
Eve, Noah, and Jesus. Following a very, very brief story, it includes
a question... something like I recommend in my Tips for Reading
to Children. It is a very good book to just sit together
and talk about the pictures. For new age 2's, the story is about
as much as they can absorb, understand or follow. For the 3's
and 4's the stories are too lightweight, but you could still use
the book's pictures. The
Hooks did the artwork. I love the softness and tenderness of the
Hook's drawings. There are one or two pictures that seem out-of-place
in this book, but by and large they are great. This
is a little red book with a blue handle. The handle is such a
treat! At story time you can ask a toddler to bring the "Bible"
to read, and they can just grab it by the handle!

This
is a New King James Version Bible, but don't let that throw you
off if you don't necessarily use this version of the Bible. If
you want to have a resource to draw on for spontaneous kid's questions,
or to help yourself prepare for Sunday with the class, this Bible
has lots of additional information. - The footnotes alone explain certain words,
situations, phrases and more.
- The maps point out travels and routes of Bible people
- Books end with a nice 4 part review, points to think and talk
about, conclusions and challenges. - A couple of good pages on the Methods
of the Master Teacher
- A song or so with music
- Lots of lists and charts
- A pronunciation guide (who doesn't need that?)
- Subject indexes (really nice to help you find stories, people,
etc. )
- Concordance (where do you find passages about certain topics)
- And a whole lot more.Some people emphasize a difference between
"saved" and "unsaved" children, and this book
does. I do not make this class distinction. I am in the hope of
resurrection for all who believe and aim to aid children in this
path, and bypass these specific words.

IF YOU TEACH CHILDREN AGE 6-13, IT IS A GREAT
BOOK TO HAVE AND WORTH THE INVESTMENT.

Customizing and Manually Editing a BookCustomizing your own book is not a crime! It can
be helpful. We just don't think about doing it. Often I have neatly ruled
out a line in a book I provided to my Sunday School teachers. I have overwritten
a word with a different word children would understand. A book that overall
has good stories, messages or pictures shouldn't be overlooked for a few
flaws. Fix them to suit you. If it's not your own book, use a tiny bit
of post-it note to cover a printed word with a different one.

Tips for Reading to Children
Get the most out of your books! Too often a book is just shown and read
aloud to children because it just seems the right thing to do. But there's
more. Illustrators usually do well to make the picture match the story.
Sometimes the pictures are simple and sometimes they are complex, but
they are all worth stopping and talking about after you have read the
text on a page.

STOP! Ask at least 3 questions about each picture.
This will clarify what is going on, and get the brain reviewing what
has been heard.
Depending on the story and picture, here are some examples of what to
ask:

Ask (when appropriate)
Who is in the picture (Identify everyone)
What is he/she doing?
How does he/she feel?
What has he/she done?
Where has he/she come from?
Where do you think he/she is going?
What is this? (Identify all objects and or animals
in the picture)
What's this for? Identify use of items in a picture - like a shepherd's
staff, manger
Should ____ watch out for something? (If there's some potential danger
in the picture)
Are they going fast or slow? (Is someone walking or running?)
What do you think will happen?
Did this ever happen to you? (likely not) How would you feel? (agree
if appropriate)
- Reassure the children God will help and everything will be ok.

Point out:
Look at what they are wearing (if it is something special or unusual)
Look at the faces (if there is an expression, ask what they think the
person feels like)

Repeat:
Instead of saying "He/she" , repeat the main characters name
in your discussion and the name of the person (or other identification
- like soldier) they are interacting with.

Simple Review:
When you're done, have the class (in Sunday School Environment) or your
child (at home) tell you the story. It can be fun to let the children
be the storytellers. If something is omitted, just ask, "what about....?"
Be sure to praise a job well done after the story has been retold.

Did they get the message?
As a teacher,what was your objective in sharing the story with the children?
It is a little harder to tell you what to ask the children because it
depends entirely on the story:
How did God help...whoever?
How did Jesus show his love and that he cares for us?
Reassure that God and Jesus take care of us.

Hope this has helped you with how to read a story
to children!

Bible and Bible Storybook SupplierThe link for individual Bibles and books goes
to Christianbook.com. You will be buying directly from them. They do
offer many discounted Bible prices, and a have a large variety of children's
Bibles and books; teen Bibles and books; and adult teaching aids, Bibles,
music, videos and best sellers.

I am not responsible if a book has been edited,
or revised after the time of this web review posting. Christianbook
offers page close-ups with actual text.

Christian Calendars
If your looking for a religious calendar for your Sunday School room or
home - one that speaks to the spirit, or a Christmas calendar, have a
look at America's Favorite Calendars,
Christian categories.

Sunday School Resources FOR KIDS
from the Sunday School Director of Christian Education of Faith Congregational
Church, Mount Prospect, Illinois